How to beat Lyme disease and keep enjoying the great outdoors

A surge in cases of the tick-borne infection Lyme disease has made some people wary of the countryside. But there's no need to worry, if you take care

'To be honest," enthuses Dr Tim Brooks, "it's a fascinating disease." As head of the Rare and Imported Pathogens laboratory at Public Health England, trying to solve the growing problem of Lyme disease (and other bugs, such as ebola) is his vocation. Lyme disease - a bacterial infection spread by infected ticks - is a particularly complex puzzle, with little reliable data available so far. It can appear in numerous forms, occasionally causing long-term neurological symptoms that could be mistaken for other conditions, such as multiple sclerosis or motor neurone disease.

Following a surge in cases this year - thought to be due to increased public awareness and rising numbers of the ticks that spread the disease - the Department of Health plans to install a network of experts around the country to support GPs and hospital staff who are unfamiliar with the disease. Meanwhile, beware misinformation online. For a start, the strains differ according to country, and no, you can't catch it from other people. An estimated 2,000 to 3,000 people in the UK come down with it each year, and most cases are straightforward to treat. Complications only arise in a minority of cases, if caught late. Here's how to best avoid being affected.

Continue reading...